The Managing Director of the Team Nigeria Trust Fund (TNTF), Suleiman Baba-Ali, has said the body will improve on the gains of Algiers 2007 All Africa Games to help preparation for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Baba-Ali said he was elated that within a short time the TNTF was able to secure six sponsors for the games.
The sponsors of Team Nigeria to Algiers 2007 were Oceanic Bank, FirstInland Bank, Sovereign Trust Insurance, Access Bank, Heart of Africa and the Nigeria Television Authority.
He said: "We are proud of the involvement of the representatives of these organisations and for the first time, we also brought them to the competition to witness the games and experience how their money was being spent."
"There is still room for improvement and we are very hopeful that the Olympics will be better. People are yet to understand the TNTF concept but as we go on, we are optimistic that things will get better," he added.
"We are involved in marketing of our team and we have quality products to sell to the world. Despite the problems experienced in Algiers, our athletes gave their best for the country."
Nigeria placed fourth at the just concluded 9th All Africa Games in Algiers behind Egypt, Algeria and South Africa.
Source: Xinhua sports committee Kunle Afunsho called on philanthropists to sponsor sports activities in Nigeria, as organizations such as the YMCA could not afford to do so because sponsorship requires huge capital. According to him, the YMCA is limiting its concerns to outdoor games such as table tennis and volleyball because of space.
To him, the competition is a starting point for young athletes who may be discovered when they put up sterling performances in either the male or female category. He expressed optimism that the competition would go higher next year.
Also, General Secretary of the association, Anthony Odogwu, said over 50 participants registered for the tourney, a huge improvement over previous editions.
Source: Xinhua
|
Comment
Tell A Friend
Print Format
Save Article